Jordan criticizes Lerner

Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Urbana, assailed former IRS official Lois Lerner today for agreeing to be interviewed by Politico.com even though she has invoked her Fifth Amendment rights in declining to answer questions before congressional investigators. Lerner, head of the IRS division dealing with tax-exempt organizations, has been accused of targeting conservative non-profits seeking tax-exempt status. The IRS dismissed her after she refused to testify before a House panel investigating the charges. “I didn’t do anything wrong,” Lerner told Politico. “I’m proud of my career and the job I did for this country.” The Politico interview was the first time she has spoken publicly about whether the IRS improperly targeted conservative groups. “Lois Lerner’s interview is a poke in the eye to the American citizens who were targeted by the IRS for exercising their most fundamental right to speak out against their government,” Jordan said in a statement. He accused her of portraying herself as a “victim to the press while refusing to answer questions about her conduct from Congress underscores why the House of Representatives held her in contempt.”